A quarter of a century after its inception, Pokemon is as popular as its ever been. The multimedia franchise about catching, collecting, and battling with fantastically-powered creatures is just as much a part of today's children as it was for kids in the '90s. A testament to that statement comes in the form of a massive Pokemon mural, which one parent thoughtfully made for their son.
In terms of video games, the long-running franchise has evolved beyond its usual RPG offerings. The most recent of these new-genre titles is Pokemon Unite, a MOBA for the Nintendo Switch. The game has set an impressive sales milestone, garnering over nine million downloads despite only launching on July 21. Pokemon Unite is celebrating this major milestone with free Aeos Tickets to Trainers.
Posted onto the Pokemon subreddit by user musabaloo, the mural depicts the anime series' Ash Ketchum tossing a pokeball, his hat backwards and ready to battle. Accompanying Ash are some classic first-gen Pokemon, along with some relative newcomers. Set against a two-tone back drop of blue and teal, classics like Pikachu, Charmander, Squirtle, and Bulbasaur can be seen in action poses, with Bulbasaur sporting some hearts on its forehead. Other, newer characters can be seen as well, with Entei, Hoppip, and Pokemon Sword and Shield's Grookey at the ready, all facing off against Fighting-Ghost Type Marshadow.
Fans have filled the comments section with compliments, with many giving the sentiment that it would've "made their childhood" had they received something similar. The comments also reveal more of the context behind the Pokemon mural's composition. The original poster reveals she and her son were watching an episode of the anime, which is soon adding a new movie to Netflix, where Ash and Pikachu were battling Marshadow. The son gave his thoughts on what Pokemon he would bring into the same battle, and his mom decided to make those thoughts into a reality.
The Pokemon fan's mom's deed is certainly an endearing one, but she isn't the only mom to be making headlines. A few days ago, a pro Call of Duty: Warzone player had a $100K Solos tournament interrupted by his mom trying to give him a pep talk in the middle of the match. Warzone pro Lenun was caught off-guard camping across from the top of a ladder when his mom abruptly came into the room saying "Trust your gut Len!" The all-too-relatable moment was captured on stream, and has amassed roughly half a million views on Twitter. It was even re-tweeted by Warzone developer Raven Software.
The amazing Pokemon mural is a dream come true for many kids who are fans of the franchise, and probably for plenty of adults too. If artistically talented fans of the franchise don't have a spare wall they can dedicate to the series, they can try getting their art immortalized with the Pokemon TCG Illustration Contest, open to U.S. residents for the first time ever.